Experienced Bad Mom

Timeline for the Best Teacher Appreciation Week Ever

Friday, April 26: I receive note from the Kindergarten room parent regarding all the activities for Teacher Appreciation Week at my daughter’s school.

Monday, April 29: I send the handmade card to school with my Kindergartner for Teacher Appreciation Week.

Tuesday, April 30: I send a box of Kleenex to school with my Kindergartner for Teacher Appreciation Week. Just in case the box gets lost in the shuffle of ALL the supplies that ALL the kids must be bringing in, I write “To Mrs. Teacher, Love, Sydney” on the box in Sharpie.

Wednesday, May 1: I remind my daughter to be extra nice and thankful to her music, gym, and media center teachers. After all, it’s their day to be and feel special this week!

Thursday, May 2: I totally blow off signing up for the Teacher Appreciation potluck. But I do express my thanks to the Heavens above that some Martha Stewart-types will have that potluck covered. You go, girls.

Friday, May 3: I express thanks to the Heavens above that the principal is hosting a Teacher Appreciation breakfast on his own dime and I don’t have to remember anything, say anything, or do anything.

Monday, May 6: I get the email from the Principal announcing the START of the fabulous Teacher Appreciation Week, May 6-10, 2013.

May you celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week better than I did!

Image courtesy of Sicha Pongjivanich / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

May 7, 2013 By Katy10 CommentsFiled Under: Bad Mom, Experienced Bad Mom, idiot, kindergarten, school Tagged With: kindergarten, school, Teacher Appreciation Week

I’m Old School

My thanks to Kerry from Breadwinningmama.com for inviting me to participate in April’s Old School blogging meme. It’s like I’m in 7th grade and she passed me a note with lots of questions to check YES or NO!

The Old School blogging meme was started by Elaine at The Miss Elaine-ous Life and Heather at Theta Mom. Their questions for this month are in bold.

How did your husband pop the big question?

It was Christmas Eve 1993 {collective gasp at how long ago that was!}. We were exchanging gifts and he got down on on one knee after he pulled a box out from the tree. He said, “Katy, I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?”

I’m still weighing my options.

What are the three most surprising things about married life?

Well, now that I’ve been married forever, I don’t know. Maybe that it’s better to keep your laundry separate but your bank accounts together?

How did you find out you were pregnant for the first time?

I just missed my monthly visitor and took a test. I guess anyone reading my blog wouldn’t be surprised by this matter-of-factness.

I did not do crafts with the test, pin it to Pinterest, update my Facebook status with it, etc.

How did you choose your baby’s first name?

First, we both had to like the name.

Second, we liked the name because it was the first name of some notable people in history who we thought were cool.

Describe where you see yourself 10 years from now.

Ten years from now I just hope I can see.

Describe how you find bliss either by using words or images.

Blogging makes me happy (you lucky readers!). I also love the feel of wind on my arms and legs, plus the sound of the wind blowing through trees. And, okay, being a wife and mother makes me happy, too!

***

How about you, dear readers? How would you answer any of the questions above? If you have a blog, consider yourself tagged to join in the fun! If you do go old school, remember to tweet your post with the hashtag #OSBlog.

April 18, 2013 By Katy6 CommentsFiled Under: blog, Experienced Bad Mom Tagged With: blogging

Ultimate Blog Party 2013

Welcome to Experienced Bad Mom! I’m pleased to be participating in the Ultlimate Blog Party 2013 hosted by 5minutesformom.com.

My name is Katy and I was first called an “Experienced” Bad Mom by my friend after I’d had my second child. She was kidding, of course, but I loved the unintended meaning. That’s because no matter how hard I try as a mom, the media, society, and neighborhood all make me feel like a bad mom. Did I breastfeed long enough? Make organic homemade baby food? Raise children who are fluent in Swahili and on the honor roll? It’s never good enough, so I might as well laugh about it!

I celebrate my imperfections and share my exploits here. My goal is to entertain and be REAL.

Thanks for reading. I welcome you to subscribe by email or follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

April 5, 2013 By Katy31 CommentsFiled Under: blog, Experienced Bad Mom Tagged With: Ultimate Blog Party

Experienced Bad Mom’s Year in Review

2012 was a big year for me and my blog. Specifically, 2012 was the year I joined Twitter, created a Facebook page, shared guest posts on Scary Mommy and The Mommy Mess, and was a featured blogger on The Sits Girls. Exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time!

I’m so thankful for the new friends/followers/bloggers/people on the street who have come along for the ride!

I had plenty of real-life Experienced Bad Mom moments in 2012, too. Here’s a brief recap of my proudest moments:

1. My family witnessed a hawk devour two baby ducks at Walt Disney World’s Boardwalk Resort.

2. I successfully {ahem} navigated 3rd/4th grade Everyday Mathematics and kindergarten homework. Gee, I love to color!

3. I actually enjoyed my trip to the giant, indoor water park (even though I left my suit bottom on the Flow Rider).

4. I realized my kids are growing up and I’m okay with that (see The Half Way Mom).

What are your favorite parenting moments from 2012?

And, Happy New Year to all!

May 2013 be your best year yet!

Image courtesy of Simon Howden / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

December 31, 2012 By Katy9 CommentsFiled Under: blog, Experienced Bad Mom, holidays Tagged With: New Year

What I’m Thankful For

It’s Thanksgiving week here in the United States and of course I’m thankful for my husband, kids, kitty cat, job and health. And on and on. Truly!

I don’t think, however, that I’ve expressed how thankful I am for this blog. The past few weeks and months have been great fun for me as a blogger and here’s why I’m thankful:

1. On Friday, I was the daily featured blogger on The SITS Girls. This led to tons of comments plus new blogger friends. Lots of people told me I’d made them laugh. That’s exactly what I’m going for–yippee!

2. Some of those comments made ME laugh. Here’s a few:

On my When Play Dates Attack post about Sydney’s hair getting stuck in the My Little Pony Car:

“I can’t stop laughing. I can TOTALLY see something like this happening at our house, especially if there was a warning sticker on the bottom of the toy. I’m now making a mental note never to Tweet about play dates before they happen…just in case! ” from The Dose of Reality

“Love the warning. I guess you can’t say you weren’t warned. Kind of like when one of my daughter’s friends wedged herself in the dryer during a game of hide and seek and the door jammed. Sheer panic on my part. I was ready to call a welder to come unweld the door or whatever they do. I was going to be on the news I was sure of it. After about five minutes that felt like five hours the door came open. And what was staring me in the face…a warning about not getting in there. I mean–I knew that, but really? Who doesn’t spend a few moments in there as a kid during hide and seek. Maytag should take that into consideration when designing their new products. Right?” from Maggie

On my Help Wanted post about managing mountains of kids’ artwork:

“HAHAHAH! I have a very vivid memory of my mom throwing away some of my little sisters’ art – she looked at me and said ‘you didn’t see this…’” from Mo @ The Baby is Fine

On my American Girl, The Saga post from last Christmas about my quest for the black ice skating outfit:

“My daughter has really wanted an American Girl doll, but I refused to pay that much money for a doll she will only play with for a year or two. Much to my joy, I found My Generation dolls at Target. Only about $20 for a doll with a cute outfit, a book and a back story. I asked her grandfather to buy it for her for her birthday. She unwrapped it at the party, took one look at it and said, “Mommy! When I get an American Girl doll, these two can be best friends!!” I almost died! Thankfully her grandfather wasn’t paying attention and didn’t hear her.” from Rabia @ TheLiebers

3. I’m also thankful that so many moms supported me in my Rage Against the Kindergarten Machine and My Crock Pot Is A Crock Alright posts. There was no harsh judgment. No calling the kindergarten or Crock Pot police. Just friendly words of encouragement and/or support, plus some easy, Experienced Bad Mom-proof recipes!

4. A fun blogging community. I already mentioned The SITS GIRLS. Another example is Jill at ScaryMommy.com who had a roll call of unflattering mommy portraits last week. Makes me feel almost normal that this is Sydney’s recent portrait of me: